Flood-fence



(Nomadel.) C' E VAN AUKEN.

FLOOD FENCE. NO. 316,854. Patented Apr. Z8, 1885.

da A WITNESSES INVENTR.

@y ,W u ATTORNEYS.

N. ganas Plwwuummpher. wmngmn. 0.o.

p UNITED 5STATEs-\ PATENT OFFICE.

CALVIN EVERET'I VAN AUKEN,

OF PLEASANT LAK-E, INDIANA.

FLOOD-FENCE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 316,854, dated April28,1885. Y

Application iilcd January 27, 1885. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern,.-

Be it known that I, 04E. VAN AUKEN, a citizen of the United States, anda resident of Pleasant Lake, in the county of Steuben and State ofIndiana, have invented certain new ,and useful Improvements inTater-Gates; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full,clear, and exact description of the invention, which will enable othersskilled in the art to which it appert-ains to make and use the same,reference being had to the accompanying drawings, which form a part ofthis specilication, and in which Figure 1 is a front view showing thegate closed. Fig. 2 is a rear view showing the gate closed. Fig. 3 is aperspective View showing the gate partially open, and Fig. 4 is avertical sectional view taken on the lines x x in Figs. 1 and 2.

The same letters rcfer to the same parts in all the gures.

This invention relates to watergatesfor ditches and other water coursesat points where they would be crossed by fences; and it has for itsobject to provide a simple and reliable swinging gate which will notobstruct or interrupt the iow of the water, nor of any drift carriedthereby, and which shall be provided with a simple and reliable latch,which, while adapted to be operated automatically by the action of fthewater, shall effectually prevent hogs and other animals from passingthrough the gate at times when there is no water in the ditch.

With these ends in view the invention consists in theimprovedconstruction and arrangement of parts, which will be hereinafter fullydescribed, and particularly pointed out in the claims.

In the drawings hereto annexed, A A designate the sidesof a ditch towhich my improved water-gate is applied.

At each side of said ditch is avertical post o upright, B, which may beend posts of a fence crossing the land which is interseeted by theditch. The upper ends ofthe said posts are connected by a cross-piece orcap, C, to the under side of which the gate is hinged or suspended. Thesaid gate, which is designated by letter D, is constructed of boards orplanks E E, bolted of otherwise secured to a pair of swinging arms, F F,the upper ends of which are connected to the under side of the cap-pieceC by means of staples G G, or in any other suitable manner that willinsure a free swinging motion. The ends of the planks forming the bodyof the gate are cut off slantingly, as shown, in such a manner as toconform to the inclined sides of the ditch, in such a manner, however,that it will easily swing clear of the sides of the ditch.

To the rear side of the body of the gate are secured a series ofvertical parallel slats, HH, extending nearly to the bottom of theditch, so as not to interfere with the flow when the water is low` inthe ditch.

To the lower edge of the body of the gate, at the front side of thelatter, is hinged a trap door, I, which normally rests upon the slats HII, but which, when the water rises in the ditch, will swing in anoutward or forward direction. The lower edge of the front side of thetrap I is connected by apivoted or hinged rod, J, with the inner ends ofa pair of latcharms, K K, which are suitably pivoted to the front sideof the gate. rlhe outer ends of said latch-arms work in staples orkeepers L L, and are arranged to engage the beveled catches M M, whichare secured to the front sides of the posts A A. The inner sides of thelatter are provided with stops or buffers O O,which, when the gate is atrest, support it in a slightlyinclined position.

From the foregoing description, taken in connection with the drawingshereto annexed, the operation and advantages of this invention will bereadily understood. Vhen the ditch is dry, the latches will hold thegate securely, and the slats II upon the rear side of the gate willprevent animals from pushing the trap door, and thus opening the gate.Vhen the water rises in the ditch, the trapdoor, partly by the currentand partly by floating, will be raised, thus releasing the latches bythe intermediate pivoted or hinged connecting rod or rods, and enablingthe gate to swing to the position shown in Fig. 3 of the drawings, or toany position to which it is capable of swinging. Then the water recedes,the latches will automatically engage their respective catches.

. Having thus described myinvention, Iclaim IOO land desire to secure byLetters Patent of the l. In a water-gate, the combination of the postsor uprights, a cap connecting the same, a swinging gate hinged to theunder side of the said cap-piece, a trap-door hinged to the lower frontedge of the said gate, latches pivoted to the front side of the saidgate and engagingbeveled catches upon the front sides of the posts, anda pivoted or hinged rod connectingthe inner ends of the latch-arms withthe lower front edge of the trap-door, substantially as and forthepurpose set forth.

2. A swinging water-gate suspended from the under side of a horizontalcap-piece, and having a series of vertical slats secured to its rearside and extending nearly to the bottom of the ditch, in combinationwith a trap-door hinged to the lower front edge of said gate andnormally resting upon said slats, latcharr'ns pivoted to the front sideof the gate and adapted to engage beveled catches upon the front sidesof the posts, and a pivoted or hinged rod connecting the lower frontedge of said trap-door with the'inner ends of the pivoted latch-arms,substantially as and for the purposes herein set forth. v

3. The combination of the posts, the cappiece connecting the same, theswinging gate hinged to the under side of said cap-piece, and havingdownward-extending vertical slats on its rear side, a trap-door hingedto the lower front edge of said gate and resting normally upon the saidslats, beveled catchessecured to the front sides of the posts,buffer-blocks'upon the inner sides of the posts, latch-arms pivoted uponthe front sides of the gate and adapted to engage the beveled catches,and a pivoted or hinged rod connecting the inner ends of the said latcharms with the lower front edgerof thetrap-door, all arranged andoperating substantially as and for the purpose herein shown andspecified.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my own I have hereuntoaffixed my signature in presence of two witnesses.

, CALVIN EVERETT VAN AUKEN.

Vitnesses:

HARMAN FREYGANG, WILLIAM KILLEN SHEFFER.

